The Duel
by elvishfury101
Summary: not good at summaries


The adventure begins on a stormy night in a tavern. The tavern is full except for one table. Every eye is on the old man telling old stories about his soldier days. During one of the man's stories the door to the tavern opened loudly. In walk two men, who sit down at the vacant table. When one of the serving maids came by them one of the men stopped her. The man ordered two beers.

The owner eyed the two men suspiciously and then finally decided to go greet them. He sat down at the table and the two men leaned forward. The two men then whispered something to the owner. The owner's face turned white. He then got up and told the old man to stop telling his story.

The two men got up and walked to the stage. They then threw back their cloaks. By the look of their clothes the two men had to be lords. At the sight of them everyone in the tavern went silent. The older man started to speak. "My name is Yodetheus, and this is my brother Silivius. My daughter, Lady Zothias, was kidnapped by a knight yesterday. He said that to get her back somebody will have to duel for her. I will pay one thousand steel coins to whoever will go and bring her back. Who will risk his life to bring her back?"

Everyone in the tavern was not moving. The man looked around sadly. He then started to get off the stage when the second man spoke "Is there no one here brave enough to help this father get back his daughter for him? Will somebody please help us get her back?"

After the second man stepped back, somebody started laughing in the room. A tall, broad man stepped out of the shadows. "I never would have dreamed to see lords beg. Why won't you two go get the girl back?"

Yodetheus jumped off the stage, and then said "We are too old to fight; we know that we will lose the duel. Will you go save her, sir? By the way, what is your name?"

The man walked up to Yodetheus and eyed him up and down. He then said, "My name is Tithus. Yes, I will go and duel the knight, but only on one condition. You will pay me five thousand steel coins for the job, or I will not do it."

Yodetheus and Silivius both stared at Tithus. Yodetheus then said, "Fine, but only after you bring my daughter back to me safe and sound. I give you my word as a lord that I will give you the money." "Where may I find this knight, so I can take him out?" stated Tithus.

Silivius pulled out a map and laid it down on a table. "The knight has taken her to his castle in the Northern Kingdom. His castle is about here. If you take the highway you should be able to get to the castle in a day. Here, take this map with you. May the gods be with you."

Tithus went to his room and got all his belongings. He then went to the stable and saddled his black stallion. He got out the map and made sure he knew the way to the castle, and then started out on the long journey. He arrived at the castle at dawn the following morning. He got off his horse and walked up to the castle. He opened the door and went in. He was in a huge, dark entrance hall. Tithus checked every room but could find nobody in the castle. He pulled back out the map and checked it again. He was at the right place. Tithus started pacing back and forth. He stopped suddenly; he could have sworn that he saw some grooves in the wall. Tithus started touching the wall to see if their was a hidden door. After about thirty minutes had gone by, he heard a loud click. The wall in front of him slid forward. He got a torch out of his pack and lit it. He then stepped through the entrance. He was in a dark gloomy tunnel. Titus loosed his sword from its scabbard and then started walking. After walking a hundred paces he saw a spiral stairway. Tithus sat down and got some food and water out of his sack. While eating he scanned the area for any movement. When finished he packed back up and then started up the stairs. Tithus counted the steps until he reached the top. He came up with three thousands stairs. Their was just one door to enter. Tithus walked up to the door and kicked the door in. The room was empty except for two people. Tithus looked at the lady and quickly came up with the thought that she was the most beautiful woman in the world. "Knight, I am going to fight you; then I'm taking this lady with me."

The knight just laughed and drew his broadsword. Tithus drew his sword and started walking toward the knight. When he was a foot from the knight, the knight charged. Tithus turned his sword to deflect the thrust. The hit almost knocked him off his feet. Tithus knew that the knight was stronger than he, so he had to be quicker. Tithus went on an all out attack. Whatever he tried he could not get through the knight's defenses. Tithus drew his dagger and threw it at the knight's face. The knight caught it and threw it to the ground, then continued attacking. The knight kicked Tithus to the ground and kicked his sword out of his hand. He put his sword on Tithus' chest when he fell to the ground. The lady was beyond the knight with Tithus' dagger in her hand dripping with blood. She dropped the dagger and ran to where Tithus was lying. "Are you all right?"

Tithus got up and checked the knight. He was dead. "Yes, come on, let's go and get you back to your father."

They walked out of the castle and then got Tithus' horse. Tithus rode back to the tavern and got his reward. He then married the lady. With the reward money Tithus bought some land and started farming. Tithus and the lady spend the rest of their lives in prosperity and never had to fight again.


End file.
